He said, “These challenges are now an ongoing part of the Australian banking landscape.”

However, the news is nothing but promising for ANZ’s canny foray into China, where the lender is the first Australian bank to get an official go ahead to use the Chinese currency RMB in its retail operations.

Dr Li told Xinhua that the “stronger connectivity” made China a strategic market for ANZ to achieve its aspiration to become a super regional bank.

“ANZ has a long-term commitment towards the China market and continues to invest in China to strengthen our capability and foundation to serve our customers in the future.

“We have secured regulatory approval of retail RMB license for local residents recently, becoming the first Australian bank in China to be fully licensed to offer a wide range of RMB-related products and services for retail customers.” Dr Li said.